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Travel Blog: Our Journeys Within

Koh Samet Surprise

Posted by April on (Updated: )  |  1 Comment

Samed Trip : 29-30  Mar’08

When I first heard about this trip from my friend Joel…I said NO thanks…because at that time I was at Rawai beach in the south of Thailand on vacation. But when I heard my friend P’Tang (Martin) was coming and all my salsa friends were going too, my decision changed. I think it’s not the place that is important but who we are going with!!

Koh Samed is not too far from Bangkok—just 3 hrs drive.  We took a van from Victory Monument (in front of Pong Lee building) and then took a ferry for about 35 minutes to get to Koh Samed…then we hopped on a small open-air bus just 10 minutes to get to our Bungalow. The room was fine but there was no toilet in the room…but the food was great!!! The… Read more »

‘aroi mak mak’ means delicious!

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One of the things I like most about living in Thailand…is eating!  We are very lucky here that there is a great variety of exotic fruit and vegetables that we can make into so many different dishes.  One of my favorites is Papaya Salad, which we call Somtum. Its basic ingredients are shredded papaya (obviously), green beans, tomatoes, sugar, fish sauce and lots and lots of chilies, which are then pounded together using a pestle and mortar.  Somtum is the most famous food from Isaan, which is the Northeastern part of Thailand, but I think that most Thai people have a special place for it in their hearts…and the spicier the better! 

If you hear a Thai person say ‘aroi mak mak’ then it means delicious, and for… Read more »

It's all about a good altitude!

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When I tell people that I fly from the US to Asia alone with two kids they look at me with a mix of awe, admiration and fear. I understand all of these emotions because I feel them about myself…I am in awe that I am dumb enough to consider such a feat, have admiration in my own ability to forget all past experiences and go into each trip with a positive attitude and fear, well fear for a lot of reasons, but mostly because I know the kind of person it takes to travel for 30 hours with two children under three and have everyone arrive in working order. It takes the patience of a saint, a creativity for new games and a calming demeanor to help distraught babies deal with absolute confinement. This is where the fear comes in, I am … Read more »

The Idea Guy

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My husband is an ADDtrepreneur. This is an entrepreneur with ADD. He is always looking for new ideas and often has several going at a time. Journeys Within, the B&B, JWOC, Nikaya, all of this came from Brandon’s head. Now I’m not saying he makes all of these ideas come to fruition, he is also smart enough to surround himself with hard working people who can take his many ideas and make them happen, but still, the ideas are his. The interesting thing about Brandon is that he has very little ego attached to his ideas. Other people can steal them and call them their own and Brandon just rolls with it. I generally take full credit for the tour company and he never bats an eye! It is actually really fun to be around… Read more »

Finally a trip of my own!

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Only one month away and I’m off for my VERY first trip abroad! Mine and Gavin (my son)’s passports came in the mail a few weeks ago, and it really hit me that we are taking a HUGE and exciting adventure. Of course I was bummed because my passport photo had red splotches all over it and it made me look like I had really bad acne or something – but I got over it. I have been doing everything I can to not pack already, but I’ll admit that I have a couple outfits set aside.

I am so grateful for this opportunity to travel, especially with my husband and my son.
We will be traveling to Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Siem Reap, Krabi and Koh Lanta. Each place will deliver a unique experience. I keep trying to tell people… Read more »